Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Goal scored!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Game over: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Team news: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
League Position
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to the 17th spot and regained position in the protected knockout positions.
| Position | Side | P | Goal Difference | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midtjylland | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| 2 | Aston Villa | 5 | 5 | 12 |
| 3 | Freiburg | 5 | 5 | 11 |
| 4 | Ferencvaros | 5 | 4 | 11 |
| 5 | FC Porto | 5 | 3 | 10 |
| 17 | Celtic | 5 | -1 | 7 |
| 25 | Nottm Forest | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 35 | Rangers | 4 | -7 | 0 |
| 33 | Malmo FF | 4 | -5 | 1 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Villa managed to hold on for the win and became tied on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. The English side had difficulty of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A significant and important win for the Glasgow side. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, concurrently, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with Young Boys supporters confronting police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and toward the field, with the player being caught on the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
Nottingham Forest: Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, Yates, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, Duric, The full-back, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, The striker.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, Ricardo Horta.
Match official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
Forest vs Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a historical link, also competing in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship from 1979 that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to continental competition in just three years."
Worth mentioning to reflect upon Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the Forest tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a European rival this season. Rangers are at the foot of the competition table at the half-way stage of the group stage with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a recovery for a playoff spot.
Coverage will persist with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
